Herman couldn't help but smirk when he saw Harry's expression.
It's rare to see Harry get the short end of the stick; such opportunities are few and far between.
He cleared his throat and sincerely suggested, "Can't you summon dogs? Try having your dog talk to it? Maybe you can find out what's inside."
Harry glanced at him, her eyes carrying a warning that said, "Are you asking for trouble again?" "Even if dogs can communicate, how do you know my dog speaks the same language as the Cerberus? Humans have many different language families too. And even if they could talk, I wouldn't understand a dog."
Herman silently thought to himself, "So you can understand snakes too?"
However, he wasn't sure if this version of Harry would still have the Parseltongue ability, since the main character had been changed.
Moreover, upon closer reflection, aside from being academically gifted, capable, sharp-tongued, rule-breaking, prone to bullying classmates (mainly because Herman felt he was being bullied), and having multiple backers, Harry has not yet shown any signs of speaking Parseltongue.
After summarizing all this, Herman suddenly realized, "Why does Harry seem like the main character after all?"
Wouldn't that make me a supporting character? No way, I need to spend less time with Harry and more time with Neville to reduce Harry's screen time.
Draco suddenly spoke up, her tone carrying a strange confidence. "Why don't you try feeding it something? My dog always behaves when I give it something good to eat."
Herman glanced at Draco, then turned to Harry, and seriously considered the feasibility of the plan. "We can give it a try. There are three of us, so we can each feed them one head. We won't have to worry about not having enough."
Harry rolled her eyes at him, ignoring his comment. Instead, she stretched her wrist holding the wand, then tossed the withered hand and the oil lamp to Draco: "Here you go."
Draco instinctively took it, and the moment her fingertips touched the withered human hand, her pupils contracted sharply.
The skin felt dry and rough, like grasping a handful of cracked tree bark, and the warmth of her palm constantly reminded Draco that this was not a living being.
Draco opened her mouth wide instantly, and just as she was about to scream, Herman swiftly reached out and covered her mouth.
The moment her mouth was covered, Draco instinctively bit down hard, her teeth embedding firmly into Herman's hand.
Herman tensed up as if he'd been electrocuted. Now it was his turn to scream, but thankfully he had some self-control. He clenched his teeth, the veins on his temples throbbing, and swallowed the scream back, managing only a muffled groan.
After Draco finished biting, she seemed to realize what she had done. She quickly let go of her mouth, took a half step back, and looked at the clear teeth marks on Herman's tiger's mouth. Her expression changed from panic to guilt, and then to a complicated sense of remorse.
Herman glanced down at the deep marks on his hand, wincing in pain, but still gritted his teeth and said, "It's okay. Next time, give me a heads-up before you bite, so I can be mentally prepared."
Harry didn't look back at what was happening behind her. She had already pushed the door open again and then went inside.
Herman heard the sound of her wand waving from inside the door, followed by the sound of a spell being chanted, neither fast nor slow, but with a clear intention to attack.
This was followed by a low bark, mixed with the sounds of claws scraping across the ground, bodies slamming into objects, and heavy objects hitting the stone wall with a dull thud.
Through the open door, Herman saw a ghostly blue magical light moving back and forth inside. Harry was dealing with Cerberus. A blue beam of magic shot from the tip of her staff, striking one of the dog's heads precisely on the side of its face. But the head only swayed slightly, as if it had been slapped, before opening its jaws to bite Harry again.
Harry dodged the attack from the head on her left, then ducked to avoid the Cleansweep claw from her right. She rolled on the ground, half-kneeling as she raised her wand.
But the third head had already blocked her escape route; its gaping maw, carrying a foul stench, pressed down directly on her, and it was too late for her to dodge.
Without thinking, Herman took the small shield off his left arm and held it in his hand, almost instinctively throwing it towards Harry.
The shield traced an arc in the air, and just before it struck the dog's jaw, the Goblin patterns on its surface suddenly lit up. A layer of pale golden light spread outward from the edge of the shield, forming a light shield several times larger than the shield itself, which steadily blocked the gaping maw.
The dog-tooth struck the light shield with a dull thud, and a ripple appeared on the surface of the shield, but it held firm.
Taking advantage of the brief opening, Harry flipped backward and retreated, Herman had already rushed into the room, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her out the door.
The two of them stumbled out the door almost simultaneously, and the wooden door slammed shut behind them with a bang.
The door panel shook slightly, as if something heavy had bumped into it from the inside, but it didn't open.
The shield flew out from the gap in the closed handrail at the last second and landed at Herman's feet. The golden light on it had faded, and it had turned back into that inconspicuous little round shield.
Herman bent down to pick up the shield, casually weighing it in his hand. He had a strange feeling that he could play United States Captain, but he needed to practice catching the shield first. Also, it was a bit too small in some ways; he'd need a super soldier serum.
Harry stood up, brushed the dust and dirt off her robes, and breathed a little faster than usual, but her face had returned to its usual calm expression.
She tucked her wand back into her belt, glanced at Herman, and said with a rare seriousness in her voice, "A head-on confrontation won't work. Its fur has high magical resistance; most attack spells are like tickles to it. It's probably Fantastic Beasts of at least XXXX danger level."
Herman looked down at the teeth marks on his hand, then at the shield at his feet, and without saying a word, began to rack his brains.
The original story does provide a solution, but it seems a bit illogical for him to suddenly reveal it himself. Besides, Herman isn't even sure if it will still work; maybe Cerberus has turned into a female and no longer likes music.
Draco stood to the side, still clutching the withered human hand, her voice much softer than before. "What should we do? Should we go back now?"
After she finished speaking, she added, "Of course I'm not scared, it's just that I feel the timing isn't right tonight, look at how you're all injured."
Herman looked down at his hand, thinking, "Isn't this where you bit me?"
When Harry heard Draco's words, she didn't say anything, but turned to look at Herman, her eyes conveying a very clear meaning:
It's your turn to speak. I've already gone in and tried it.